Data Unit Converter
Easily convert between different data storage units including bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, and more.
Data Storage Units Explained
Data storage units measure digital information. There are two main systems: the decimal (SI) system based on powers of 1000, and the binary system based on powers of 1024.
Decimal (SI) Data Units
| Unit | Symbol | Value (in bytes) | Used For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Byte | B | 1 byte | Single character |
| Kilobyte | KB | 1,000 bytes | Small text files |
| Megabyte | MB | 1,000,000 bytes | Photos, short audio clips |
| Gigabyte | GB | 1,000,000,000 bytes | Movies, large applications |
| Terabyte | TB | 1,000,000,000,000 bytes | Large databases, storage drives |
| Petabyte | PB | 1,000,000,000,000,000 bytes | Data centers, cloud storage |
Binary Data Units
| Unit | Symbol | Value (in bytes) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kibibyte | KiB | 1,024 bytes (2^10) | Used in computing contexts |
| Mebibyte | MiB | 1,048,576 bytes (2^20) | Memory allocation, file sizes |
| Gibibyte | GiB | 1,073,741,824 bytes (2^30) | RAM, operating systems |
| Tebibyte | TiB | 1,099,511,627,776 bytes (2^40) | Large storage arrays |
Common Data Unit Conversions
- 1 Kilobyte (KB) = 1,000 bytes (B)
- 1 Megabyte (MB) = 1,000 KB = 1,000,000 B
- 1 Gigabyte (GB) = 1,000 MB = 1,000,000,000 B
- 1 Kibibyte (KiB) = 1,024 bytes (B)
- 1 Mebibyte (MiB) = 1,024 KiB = 1,048,576 B
- 1 Gibibyte (GiB) = 1,024 MiB = 1,073,741,824 B
Why Binary vs Decimal Matters
This difference between decimal and binary units (KB vs KiB) explains why your 1 TB hard drive shows up as approximately 931 GB in your operating system. Operating systems typically use binary units (GiB) but label them with decimal unit names (GB).
Practical Examples
Common File Sizes
- A plain text email: ~10 KB
- A high-resolution photo: ~5-10 MB
- A 4K movie (compressed): ~15-30 GB
- A modern video game: ~50-150 GB
- A smartphone app: ~20-200 MB
Storage Devices
- DVD: 4.7 GB
- Blu-ray disc: 25-50 GB
- USB flash drive: 8-256 GB
- SSD: 250 GB-4 TB
- Cloud storage plan: 5 GB-2 TB